NELSPRUIT HOSTS MPUMALANGA COPA COCA-COLA PROVINCIAL FINALS

The Kabhokweni Stadium in Nelspruit will host the under-15 COPA Coca-Cola Mpumalanga provincial football finals on Saturday, 16 June. The four regional winners in the province will be competing for the provincial crown and for a place at the COPA Coca-Cola national finals in Johannesburg from July 12 to 14.

The schools that will be competing are: Lehlasedi High School (Bohlabela region); Nansindlela Combined School (Nkangala region); Lindile Secondary School (Gert Sibande region); Tikhontele Secondary School (Hlanzeni region) and the action kicks off at 10am on Saturday June 16.

Lindile Secondary School from Wesselton Township in Ermelo is not new to COPA Coca-Cola having reached the provincial finals in 2009, only to be knocked out in the final game.

Coach, Thulani Nkosi, has been in charge of the team for three years now. He believes COPA Coca-Cola has helped the school interact more with their neighbouring schools because now they all train during the week and play matches against each other over weekends which is something they don’t normally do.

Nkosi singles out defensive midfielder Zanele Kuhlase as one of his key players. “He makes good runs from the back and covers well for the other defenders,” Nkosi says. He is also expecting big things from his captain and goalkeeper Andile Motha. “He saved two penalties in the regional playoffs and reads the game very well. He is a natural leader.”

Andile Motha sees the provincial playoffs as a great opportunity to meet other players. “The best part of the tournament is playing against other teams from around the province that we have not seen before. This is the best way to help us develop into better players.”

Lindile’s strongest opposition is likely to come from Tikhontele Secondary School from the Hlanzeni Region. The School is situated in Mbombela Village near Nelspruit and is in the COPA Coca-Cola provincial finals for the third time. They were knocked out at this stage in 2009 and again last year.

Team manager Nkosana Mhlongo believes winning is not the most important thing. “You benefit just by competing,” he says. “We have never been crowned the provincial champions before but it is the experience that counts and the two sets of soccer kits we have which we use all the time.”

Goalkeeper Surprise Mahumane is one the side’s star players. “He has great reflexes, and is a good ball distributor,” said Mhlongo.  Defender Musa Ndwandwe is another player that the side will be depending on for a good performance on Saturday.

“I will be doing my best on Saturday because I want to go to the Nationals in Johannesburg to stand a chance of being scouted by one of the PSL teams,” says Surprise Mahumane. “It is my dream is to play football professionally one day.”

The winning school on Saturday will join Kabelo Secondary School from Limpopo; Are-Fadimeheng Secondary School from North West; Johannesburg Secondary School from Gauteng; Masibonisane High School from KwaZulu-Natal and Robinvale High School from the Western Cape at the COPA Coca-Cola national finals in Johannesburg from July 12 to 14. The other provinces will be identifying their champions over the next few weeks.

CAN HARMONY HIGH SCHOOL WIN THE R1 MILLION SANLAM KAY MOTSEPE SCHOOLS CUP PRIZE MONEY – FOR A FOURTH TIME?

Welkom will be hosting the Free State under-19 Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup provincial final on Saturday at Rovers Club (kickoff 9am).  It might well be cold on the day, but on the football field there is sure to be some hot action when six regional teams battle it out for the R100 000 prize awarded to the provincial champion.

The winners and runners-up will both be travelling to Bloemfontein from October 2 to 6 where they will meet the top two sides of the other eight provinces to compete for the Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup National title and the R1 million that goes with it.

In action will be a number of schools who have enjoyed considerable success in this competition over the years. Pride of place goes to Virginia’s Harmony Sports Academy who is six times Sanlam Kay Motsepe School Cup Free State Champions and has won the competition’s National Finals three times.  In the past two years Harmony has won R1.7million for the school that was spent on a 44 seater bus, 3 other vehicles, a TV and projector, computers, sprinkler system, sports equipment and donated R20 000 of sports equipment to neighbouring schools.

Defending champions Dr Reginald Cingo Comprehensive School from the Fezile Dabi region will also be in action on Saturday. The school is situated in Maokeng Township near Kroonstad and this is their sixth time in the Sanlam Kay Motsepe Schools Cup competition. Apart from winning the title last year, the team made it to the provincial playoff stage in 2010.

Their coach, Sam Nketu, is very experienced. He has coached in the SAFA Second Division League and this is his 10^th year with the school team. Nketu believes that, despite having six players back, there is still a lot of work to be done. “We need a lot of improvement, particularly on the right hand side of the field, but I am still confident for Saturday,” he says. Of the players who were in the team last year, Nketu believes striker Lebohang  Mokhunoane will make an impact in the provincial finals “He is a good dribbler and controls the ball well.”

Midfielder Mokete Mojananga was also part of last year’s team that won the provincial title. “He reads the game well, has is an accurate shooter and a good team motivator,” Nketu says.

HTS Louis Botha School from Bloemfontein in the Motheo Region are in the provincial finals of the Sanlam Kay Motspe Schools Cup for the first time, although they have played in the competition for four years.

Their coach, Prince Sani, introduced a system in 2010 of identifying players in grade eight and keeping them together as a team. “I think we were successful in our regional matches this year because the players understand each other they know what is expected of them now.”

Key players in the Louis Botha team are goalkeeper Ofentse Motlhanke and midfielder Charles Hlalela who reads the game well and is the team’s current leading goal-scorer.

The other teams that will be in action in Welkom on Saturday are: Ipetleng Secondary School (Xhariep District); Moketa High School (Thabo Mofutsanyana District) and Concordia High School (Lejweleputswa District).

ROBINVALE SECONDARY SCHOOL ARE THE COPA COCA-COLA WESTERN CAPE CHAMPIONS

Robinvale Secondary School became the Western Cape COPA Coca-Cola under-15 football provincial champions when they beat favourites, Cloestesville Secondary School 1-0 in the final match this past weekend at the Zwelentemba Stadium in Worcester.

The six winners of the Western Cape regional playoffs were divided into two pools of three teams each and the top school in each pool – Robinvale and Cloetesville - went through to the provincial final.

Robinvale, located in Atlantis on the West Cape coast, has competed in three Western Cape COPA Coca-Cola provincial finals, but this is the first time they have made it through to the national finals.

Their coach, Anthonio Michaels, was delighted with their performance. “We have played Cloetesville on a number of occasions, but this is the first time that we have beaten them,” he said.  “For the past four years we have been eyeing Copa Coca-Cola as a tournament to win and we have finally made it to the next level, the national finals, which is very exciting. The battle is not yet won, however, and I will spend the next few weeks preparing the boys mentally and physically for the next step. We are looking forward to the challenge and hopefully we will do as well at the national finals.”

Robinvale team captain, Vuyolomzi Mfiki, while excited, is not quite sure what to expect at the national finals, however he believes the team is fully prepared.  “I know we have been classified as newcomers but I believe many will know us by the end of the tournament. Last year we lost in the provincial final due to lack of concentration. We have learnt and are focused. We have worked really hard to be where we are now and our goal now is to come home with the trophy.”

Cloetesville Secondary School has been one of the most successful teams in the competition in the Western Cape. They won the Western Cape provincial finals in 2008, 2009 and in 2008 they were the COPA Coca-Cola national champions.

Robinvale now join Masibonisane High School from KwaZulu-Natal; Kabelo Secondary School from Limpopo, Are-Fadimeheng Secondary School from Northwest and Johannesburg Secondary School from Gauteng at the COPA Coca-Cola National Finals, in Johannesburg from July 12 to 14.

RESULTS

POOL A

Robinvale secondary School   5    vs       Lukhanyo Intermediate School 0

Lukhanyo Intermediate School 0   vs       Imizamo Yethu Secondary School 4
Robinvale Secondary School 3    vs        Imizamo Yethu Secondary School 1
 

POOL B

Beaufort West Secondary School 2         vs        Phandolwazi Secondary School 0

Phandolwazi Secondary School 3           vs       Cloetesville Secondary School 1
Beaufort West Secondary School 1         vs        Cloetesville Secondary School 2

Final

Robinvale Secondary School 1 vs Cloetesville Secondary School 0

SPECIAL SCHOOL BENEFITS FROM FIRST EXPERIENCE IN DANONE NATIONS CUP

Tsosoloso Special School might not have won the Gauteng Danone Nations Cup Provincial Finals that took place at the Central Grounds in  Mamelodi today, but the teachers used the experience gained from competing in a tournament of this magnitude as an exercise to help build the youngsters confidence.  Tsosoloso won one of their three scheduled games beating Roosevelt Primary School 1 – 0.  The tournament was ultimately won by Sonqoba Primary School who beat defending champions, Sapebuso Primary 3 – 1 on penalties after the game levelled at 1-all after regulation time.  Sonqoba will now represent Gauteng Province in the National Finals.  The ultimate winner will compete in the 40-Nationa World Final in Warsaw, Poland in September.

Tsosoloso, Situated in at the Father Simangaliso Mkhatshwa  Welfare Complex in Soshanguve, is a safe haven for orphaned, abandoned and abused children.  The school has been in operation since 1987 and cares for 350 kids, ranging from 3 to 16 years old,  referred to the school by Social Workers, the South African Police Services (SAPS) and neighbouring schools.

Explains coach, Mohapi Nkutshoeu as to the reason he has been eying the Danone Nations Cup for a couple of years now.  “Every child in the schools comes from a challenging situation meaning that they all have psychological issues, the main being lack of trust, confidence and aggression.  Sport is a means of getting kids active and is a place they can feel safe.  We also use sport, soccer in particular, to teach the kids family values.  When you play in a team you have to trust your team mates.  I tell them that they are playing as a family.”

Mkhatshwa has been at the school since2009.  “I was a member of a group that came to the school as psychologists to talk to the children.  I then joined the school full time where I continue to build the children and am now one of the sports teachers”.

The school is a multi cultural facility and has helped thousands of children grow into fine members of society.  The school relies solely on Government funding to survive and there is not enough to service the sports facilities which are challenging.  “But we manage with what we have and all the players love to just get out onto the field and play,” said Nkutshoeu.

The Gauteng Danone Nations Cup provincial final was won by

RESULTS:

Ivory Park 2 vs  Qhoweng Primary 1

Sapebuso  Primary 1 vs Roosevelt Primary 0

Tsosoloso Special School 0 vs Sunnyside Primary 1

Ivory Park Primary 0 vs  Benoni West Primary 3

Sapebuso Primary 1 vs Tsosoloso Special School 0

Qhoweng Primary 1 vs Sonqoba Primary 0

Roosevelt Primary 0 (2) vs Sunnyside Primary 0(3)

Sonqoba Primary 3 vs Ivory Park 0

Sunnyside Primary 0(2) vs Sapebuso Primary 0(0)

Benoni West Primary 0 (1 )  vs Qhoweng Primary 0(2 )

Tsosoloso Special School 1   vs  FD Roosevelt Primary 0

FINAL:

Sapebuso  1 (1)  vs   Sonqoba 1 (3)